takeaway is our company emerges from a time of war that i was elected in part to end. buzz we really want to turn away from taking appropriate action in the face of such an >> welcome ting al jazeera. i'm john siegenthaler. here are nirt's top stories. john mccain and lindsay graham met with president obama, congressional hearings on syria begin tomorrow. syria's president told a french magazine today that a strike against his country could result in a larger war in the middle east. he called the region a powder keg. there have been new crack downs by egypt's military backed government against muslim brotherhood, a ngo no

nongovernmental organization. dangerous radiation spreading at the fukushima nuclear plant in japan. helping tokyo electric power trying to contain contaminated water. verizon is buying out its partner vodafone for $130 billion. one of the largest corporate deals ever. the company hopes that full control will make verizon more competitive against its rivals. 64-year-old diana nyad swam from cuba to key west, florida without a shark cage prospect those are the headlines. america tonight is up next. >> on america tonight. an old rival may be the president's most importanta imp.

>> a vote against that would be catastrophic because it would undermine the credibility of the united states of america and the president of the united states. >> on this labor day, the war over wages. how the fight for better pay ask stalling walmart in its tracks. and a swimmer's dream. some 35 years in the making. >> you never are too old to chase your dreams. >> that's right. good evening and welcome to america tonight. thanks for joining us, i'm joie chen. it is a holiday today, but no easing back for lawmakers when

they return from their summer blake tomorrow. on the table, an urgent vote on whether to strike on syria. one that has president obama in a difficult position. over the weekend, the president said he whereas ready to order a strike on syria, in response to chemical weapons there but put the ball in congress's courts to hear their thinking. today he invited senators john mccain and lindsay graham of south carolina. the republicans have led the cry for more action. john mc.kane described the meeting as productive. >> both senator graham and i are in agreement that now a resolution is going to be before the congress of the united states. we want to work to make that resolution something that

majority of the members of both houses can support. a rejection of that, a vote against that resolution by congress i think would be catastrophic. because it would undermine the credibility of the united states of america and the president of the united states. none of us want that. >> also the white house senator graham expressed his optimism for administration efforts to stem up aid to opposition forces in syria. >> we understand where the president is at on that issue but it is my hope that even a limited military strike can degrade the assad ability to use chemical weapons. but there seems to be emerging a pretty solid plan to upgrade the opposition, to get the regional players more involved. saudi arabia, turkey, jordan, a lot of the gulf states have been helping quietly.

now is the time to get out front and be more overt. what can i sell to people in south carolina? i can't sell another iraq or afghanistan because i don't want to. >> senator graham preceded by senator mccain. also speaking out today an increasing number of members of congress at thi still at home wh their constituents for the labor day weekend. i asked john garamendi. >> two very separate things, first of all, the president made the right decision going to the congress. the constitution is very clear. congress declares war sending missiles into any country is an act of war. secondly the war powers act says it has to be an imminent act before he can take action without the consent of congress. he did the courageous thing now american people through their representatives, 535 of us will share in the responsibility in make the decision about what to

do with this horrendous and all awful gas attack. >> that leads to the next question, have you yourself decided how you're going ovote? >> as of this moment i'm a no vote. we will have classified hearings on the armed services committee i hope. after that the question can be asked again, what's your vote mr. garamendi but at this point i'm a no vote. >> what would it take to switch you to a yes vote? >> a lot more clarity, what our purpose, what our goal is, is it more than just credibility? i hope so. and what are the -- what are our allies doing? there was talk today that countries in the middle east would join us in a military effort. i'm concerned about that. it's nice to have allies but the problem of syria has always been is it a vortex in which a regional war would be -- could

happen so we get all of our allies -- >> it is the unintended consequences that worry you the most? >> absolutely. >> even offering any additional proof about the presence of serin or vx or any particular chemical weapons isn't going to necessarily are enough to sway you to the other side on this? >> that's correct, that's correct. i'm pretty much satisfied that chemical weapons were used. there's still some question about whether assad directly or indirectly was involved. where did the weapons come from, how did they go? those are important questions but i'm much more concerned about, then what? shall we launch a strike? then does assad stops or continues using them what do we do? >> true and yet if there were chemical weapons if it can be proven that the regime is behind it, isn't there a need for a worldwide concern an expression as it were? >> well, that's the basic underlying question. but what is the goal? is the goal punishment or is the

goal to stop him from doing it again? i think an air strike, missile strike doesn't guarantee in any way, even 50-50 dwarnt request, that -- guarantee, that he would not continue to use weapons. in fact you might push the assad regime into a more desperate situation in which they would more likely use the weps. >> thank you for being with us today. >> thank you. >> america tonight correspondent sheila macvicar has led the conversation. sheila rejoins us now. talk to us a little bit about how today's meeting at the white house sort of prestages what might happen when this resolution gets to the hill. >> joie, two great hawks meeting with the president today. but senators mccain and graham face opposition including within their own party which is divide he between interventionists and isolation is.

there will be a big push this week from the white house, they call it flooding the zone. the secretary of state kerry and secretary of defense hagel will testify in front of the house committees this week. the white house has indicated it will rewrite the motion it wants song to consider. especially, no american boots on the ground. senator mccain's argument that u.s. credibility will be shredded if congress doesn't support the president's call to action. it may prove to be a very powerful one that resonates in washington. also today an interview with syrian president bashar al-assad in the french magazine lefigaro. he aggressively scorned, defied the u.s. and france to put forward evidence and further

when asked if an element of his military could have acted without approval, he said we have never said we had chemical weapons. the power keg has been lit, we need to talk not only about the syrian response but what happens after the first strike? no one knows what will happen. everyone loses control once the powder keg explodes, there is a risk of a regional war. adding a warning aimed at u.s. and france, anyone who contributes to strengthening the finances or military of the terrorists is an enemy of the yrntion people. anyone who acts against the syrian people is a way that the french state is hostile to the syrians, that state is an enemy. meantime, talking about the french in pairs, french government of francois hollande,

faces the same problem as obama with lawmakers deeply divided, public opinion against him, and he said today, france would not act alone. furthermore to take a step back and take a look at who's in and who's out in this coalition of the less than enthusiastic in the region, the arab league said, assad should be held accountable. egypt and algeria said they would not support the strikes. refuses air space to be used for the attack. libya and kosovo is also fractured, brit britain and cana are all out. there has been some suggestion that the u.k.'s parliament can

be recalled for another vote and that is probably a long shot. we also heard from syria's closest ally, russia, talks to bring an end to syria's civil war. here is things prime minister. >> if the strike announced by the u.s. president does take place, our deepest regret, i think that despite everything being said, at the moment, this will throw the prospect of that forum back further. if not forever. going sergei lavrov, referring to the negotiations taking place in algeria. british sources today saying putin will face the full force of the g-20 later this week to accept the evidence and agree that it's time for assad to go. joie. >> we wanted to understand a little bit more about the

elements that bring russia and syria closer together. joining us george mason university professor george katz. can you talk about that professor is it a matter of history that russia hangs on here? >> i think for russia syria is the last ally they have in the middle east. if assad falls russia has no position in the middle east. i think that also for putin this has become a domestic issue for him. that he wants to be seen as being tough against the americans. it would be worse for him to be seen knuckling under and cooperating with the u.s. >> but does he think that there's any opportunity for him to influence u.s. policy? >> i think that what he wants to do is to delay an attack if he can, to limit it, if not delay it, to delegitimize it if he

can't do that. what he wants to do -- what he wants us to see is what we're seeing right now and that is that the america's potential partners not necessarily rallying behind president obama. >> why -- why is putin so fixated around the preservation of the assad regime, what does assad bring to him? >> i think for putin and the russians what they see is that assad is a secular arab nationalist and as bad as he is as far as they're concerned whatever comes after him will be worse. not just worse for russia but worse for america and the west. and from their point of view, why is america doing this? that they don't see -- they don't see this as rational. >> we talk a lot about the relationship between russia and syria, in many case it is a client state or a customer state as it were of russia's. >> it is, but it's a difficult

customer as all of russia's allies were in the third world, were in the past and the few remaining are now. certainly not a lot of joy, syria doesn't do what russia tells it to do, that's for sure. on the other hand, i think from the russian point of view if assad goes what comes next will be worse. >> how much of putin's thinking is predicated upon his own internal problems with islamist in chech ne chechnya and dagast? >> they see a connection. if assad falls it's russia that is going to suffer, somehow the islamist problem in the caucuses is going to become worse. in putin's mind they do connect. i think from his point of view america is making things worse and that he is the one who's going to have to pay. >> and to push it back to the question of the customer

relationship between russia and syria, russia has provided a lot of the military hardware for syria. what happens there? >> they have. you know certainly in our terms it's not a very you know huge relationship. it's you know a few billion dollars, basically. on the other hand, russia doesn't have all that many customers, and so it values those that it does have. i think that absent the arms relationship, either absent the naval facilities that russia has, that russia would still have this self-same position, these are not the maim drivers.russian policy. >> and indeed sheila they have not been particularly good paying customers. >> apparently they are a little strapped for cash and they haven't been paying their bills in recent years. i think $5 billion on the table as far as arms sales. >> they never pay their bills. you know putin pressed them about the soviet era debt. they wouldn't pay, putin wrote it off, okay we'll now sell you

weapons which you'll pay, and they haven't paid for those either. >> interesting relationship, professor katz and sheila macvicar, we'll see you later on the program. still to come on america tonight, america's largest retail giant, looking to fortify, and stalling walmart's plans.

is >> and welcome back. on this labor day, the nation's biggest retailer, walmart is pitted against the nation's capital. d.c. city council is forcing walmart to raise wages by $2.25

at least it would like to. walmart's reaction abandoning plans for three new stores in the district. vincent gray has nine days left to sign or veto the bill at hand. in chicago former mayor richard daly vetoed a bill two years ago. vin cent beery goes to washington to interview being. >> the sun is just up, when 60-year-old charlayne rides the first of two buses to a store outside chicago. she has been working there for eight years. >> you've been working there eight years and how much do you earn? >> i learn $11 an hour. >> that is more than the $8.25 an hour minimum wage. but for charmaine, the salary she earns winds up on the u.s. poverty line.

$19,530 for a family of three, barrel enough to cover rent. >> i'm a full time associate at walmart averaging between 32 and 34 hours a week. this past week i worked 29 hours. so with that, it's far below a living wage. >> wages like that are why these union-backed organizers in washington, d.c. are seeking to keep retail giants such as walmart out of the city. >> we're asking that you call the mayor and ask him to support us. >> unless they agree to pay at least $12.50 an hour. >> and we're saying hey the door is open, however you have to share just a little bit of that prosperity with our citizens so they can have an opportunity to have a good quality of life. >> vincent orange is among a majority of d.c. councilmembers who voted to ban low price retailers. >> they utilize the food stamps, the energy programs, the

breakfast and lunch programs for their children and all that cost rises and is passed on to the taxpayers and the government picks up that cost. >> but walmart is already opening new stores in the washington suburbs. >> what's that? >> and they had also planned six for the district. including one on this run down spot in a poor neighborhood. stores that walmart says would bring 1800 badly needed jobs. >> these are good paying jobs. our managers make anymore from 50,000 to $170,000 a year. i know the residents of washington, d.c. want those jobs and need those jobs and those jobs will eventually turn into career. you all help us get into washington, d.c. >> i'm going to be the first in line. >> rolanda jones tells us she would be eager to work there. >> even if the wages aren't really high.

>> yeah, something's better than nothing and right now i don't have anything. >> but walmart is threatening to cancel those plans because of the city council vote. its regional general manager told the washington post this legislate is arbitrary discriminatory and discourages investments in washington, d.c, resulting in lower prices. >> either you do that or we'll pull out. >> a similar pitched battle has already played out in chicago. in 2006, the city council banned big box retailers, but then mayor richard daly vetoed the bill, his only veto during 22 years in office. now walmart is making a big push into urban markets. this walmart in a working class neighborhood on chicago's west side is the 9th and newest to open in the city. in chicago walmart now employs

about 2,000 people. the company tells us the average wage is just over $13 an hour. slightly above the national rate of 12.57. for these customers doing their back to school shopping walmart's low price he and its jobs are welcome. >> i'm on the side of 2,000 people working, that's a lot of people, that's a lot of jobs that ostore like this creates which i think is great. >> it's great because it provides jobs that are desperately needed in the neighborhood. some people that have a college degree can't get a job and they're finding jobs at mcdonald's for $9 an hour. i think it's a pretty good amount. >> but for charmaine gifns thomas making -- givens thomas it's a big decision. >> just determine how much to pay just to keep things going. >> have you had gas turned off? >> oh yes, i have gas turned off

now. >> why? >> because i couldn't pay the bill. >> how do you cook? >> with an electric hot plate. i'm a lilz embarrassed about that. -- i'm a little embarrassed about that. >> some other big retailers pay wages similar to walmart's and fast food chains pay even less. but researchers at the university of california berkeley found out that walmart who earned $scealg 16 billion a year could easily afford to start its workers at $12 an hour. >> an increase to 12 or 12.50 an hour would be a significant increase to those workers. and if they were to pass the entire cost on to consumers it would only cost 46 cents per consumer per shopping trip, a very small amount compared to the very real benefit to the workers. >> a walmart spokesman tells us

the study is flawed and shows a lack of understanding about how business works. but costco another retail giant says it pays an average of $20 an hour. dorsey recently got hired at costco in washington after a string of minimum wage jobs. >> it meant a lot of things. i was able to purchase me a vehicle two months ago. last friday i just moved into a new place. i am able to do some things i wasn't able to do before. >> mr. mayor, it's time for living wage for d.c. and america. >> on the front lines in washington organizers are asking the mayor to back the city council bill demanding higher wakes. >> say yes. it is [cheering and applause] >> but walmart and its supporters insist that new jobs in the poorest neighborhoods are

badly needed. and charmaine givens thomas keeps riding the bus, knowing that her $11 an hour is all that keeps her family hanging on the poverty line from crashing beneath it. >> that report from correspondent chris bury. we're going to continue the discussion about living wage and walmart wage with congressman vincent beery. stay tuned. ç]

>> and now a snapshot of stories making headlines on america tonight. radiation levels around japan's crich led fukushima plant are 18 times higher than previously thought. radioactive water had leaked from a storage tank into the ground. radiation levels show that four hours of exposure could be deadly. former south african leader nelson mandela spent his first night at home. he's still receiving intensive

treatment from a lung infection that left him hospitalized for three months. nighing his supporters to kill ten peoples, prosecutors say the incident happened last december when tens of thousands of protesters appeared generosity the presidential being palace. the muslim brotherhood will also stand trial for incitement to murder. (t) conflict in syria and the debate on whether the u.s. should lead a government strike on military targets had this in response to a chemical attack by the yrntion regime. sheila macvicar, our correspondent who has been following these events, sheila what do we know more about this evidence? >> well over the weekend john

kerry said that the gas used was serin, a dead reply neurotoxin known to be in the syrian arsenal. only intelligence report, nine pages, damascus has the largest operational stocks in the world. this includes hundreds of tons of serin. syria it says has studied new methods of chemical agent dispersal including small amounts of chemical agents for tactical purposes. and who controls the weapons, is responsible for filling of the chemical weapons side security. this unit is composed only of alloite soldiers, the french government describes the attack as massive and only the syrian

regime has the capacity to carry it out. >> sheila want to bring in al jazeera contributor alza patel, global body based aat the hague, faisa can you talk about the relationship of the world powers to chemical weapons? why do they become so important and in a way almost considered more critical than other kinds of weapon systems? >> in modern chemical warfare really begins with world war i. we all know the stories about gas being used in the trenches and started by the germans. and after world war i people were so horrified by the effects of the use of gas that they agreed to something called the geneva protocol which banned the use of chex weapons and other toxins. this goes on for a while, chemical weapons are used periodically. they were used in the 1970s in

yemen in the civil war, they were used most famously in the iran-iraq war in the 1980s and the attack of saddam hussein against the kurds. you see getting ready to give out their chemical ars analysis. in the 1960s president nixon determined that the united states would not use chemical weapons. >> the pictures for example that we have seen over the last week can really disturbing and they strike seemingly a very emotional chord among the public. is it really that? >> that's right. >> or is it just a weapons system that is considered obsolete in some way? >> i think it's a little bit of both. i mean certainly you know the rows of dead bodies laid out like that has a very strong and emotive appeal. but a lot of sort of big powers also decide he that they weren't going obe using chemical weapons

anymore that they were going to phase them out of their arsenals. you know for reasons including their sort of impact on civilian populations, their impact on public opinion, but also, you know i think questions about whether they would actually ever use them, given those kinds of effects. and that all led to you know the negotiation of the big chemical weapons treaty which is called the chemical weapons convention which was negotiated in geneva over more than a decade and entered into force in 1997. and what this treaty basically does is kind of unique among arm control treaties because it actually bans an entire category of weapons. it says not only can you not use chemical weapons you can't even hold onto the chemical weapons you have and tell us you won't use them. you have to get rid of all your stock piles of chemical weapons and you've got to destroy any production facilities that you have. and this treat yir has almost --

treaty has almost global concurrence, including syria and egypt and north korea. that is where we are in terms of regulation. >> let me bring back sheila macvicar who has been watching closely all the developments on syria. sheila, when we talk about the stock piles that syria is known to have this is a significant amount. we're not talking about a small want, a really significant amount. >> these are significant. the french said they believed they had the largest stock piles in the world. for the is syrian process they see chemical weapons as the poor man's nuclear weapons, as a deterrent against israel's nuclear program which is a well developed program and has spanned a number of decades. so that syrian thinking there using it in this conflict in this civil war they are using these weapons in a tactical

sense and the intelligence that they used those on august 21st those horrible attacks on damascus because they were frustrated with trying to deal with very tough districts in the capital that are held by rebels. they had been hounding those districts, they had been meeting a tremendous amount of resistance so they thought by using chemical weapons they would cause that resistance to crumble. >> the last word to you on this. how are the develops that we are talking about here going to change the broader picture for chemical weapons in the future? >> obviously president obama taking such a strong stance against assad's use of chemical weapons is kind of a boost, against the category of weapons should be band. and on the other hand, you know, the resistance to his stance is i think disheartening to those people. so a lot will depend on you know what actually happens, does he get congressional approval and obviously you know whether or not he gets congressional

approval has a great deal of impact for the future, where if you're looking at porter weapons of mass destruction other countries that might be developing them, does the united states have the backbone to stand up and say no and actually take military action to stop it. >> we'll see, faiza and sheila both important contributors. coming up next, we head to the jersey shore. >> i'm adam may on the jersey shore. ten months after hurricane sandy, the new debate how to rebuild and protect these communities from future storms. >> we'll catch up with new jersey's most famous resident, governor chris christie. disorder in a mexico court. why this judge lost his cool.

>> coming up on credit this. what obstacles will cause a possible american intervention? and what does a serin gas attack look like? a former weapons inspector weighs in. and facebook is a leading source of communication but is it also a major cause of depression? plus diana nyad completes a record swim from cuba to florida. we'll go inside the death defying feat, we'll see you at the top of the hour. >> and on this labor day, we return to the conversation that is really important to all of

america's workers: money. more now on washington, d.c.'s fight with walmart over washinger wages. d.c. city council is facing walmart to raise its wages by $2.25. it's a 50% increase over some other major retailers in the city. walmart's reaction is to abandon plans for three new stores in the district which may be very important to the city's redevelopment. washington mayor vincent gray has nine days to sign or veto the bill. trying to push for the increase in the hourly wage for d.c. workers are we talking strictly sir about walmart? >> no, we're not. we're talking about large retailers that gross in excess of $1 billion and have a 75,000 square foot store in the district of columbia. >> is that de facto just walmart? >> no it applies to home depot, it applies to costco, it applies to macy's, other large retailers that meet the definition under the law.

>> would this also apply then to smaller retailers, even down to all small businesses and why not do it that way? >> because the law is clear. there's two standards. one, you must have grossed $1 billion or more and you must have a store that is at least 75,000 square feet. >> no, i appreciate that but why not just have the whole city raise all of the minimum wage? >> well, the minimum wage bill right now is before congress, and congress is addressing that issue. they're trying to get the minimum wage up to $10.10 an hour which would be $11.10 in district of columbia. the issue before me, of the district of columbia is the issue of $12.50 in these large retail operations. >> we layered a report from earlier in the program from some workers that said look, you know what? i understand this wage is not as good as i really need it to be. i understand it's still going to be hard for me to take care of my family on this wage but i need the work, i need the job. if what happens is that walmart

doesn't open stores, then how have you really benefited workers here? >> well, let's face it. here in the district of columbia right now we're doing very well. that's the reason walmart wants in. we have a large concentrated consumer base that has disposable income, one of the highest disposable income in the nation. that's why walmart wants in. we're saying walmart the door's open, come on in but you must share some prosperity. we're not going olet you pay poverty wages in the district of columbia and on the back of these employees. it is unfortunate that walmart has employees that have to purchase items in wament with food stamps. >> why don't they call your bluff and say type, we'll go outside to maryland and virginia and not worry about coming in? >> the thing is walmart doesn't

operate here and we're doing very well. we came off of $800 million of surpluses, the next four years, our, we have $1.5 billion in our rainy day fund, we have plans to create jobs in the next years, we have cranes and economic developments taking place. i was with the mayor just a couple of days ago, and with our marquee hotel convention center. in the nation's exam we're doing well, people are wanting what we have. we say come on in but you must share the prosperity. >> thank you for being with us. >> thank you for having me. >> and america tonight, we'll return with the final segment of our program tonight. ç]

>> it's been a tough labor day weekend along the jersey shore. ten months after hurricane sandy business is still way down and

there's been criticism of the rebuilding effort. our correspondent adam may is on the jersey shore. >> hi joie. we talked to residents and small business owners and politicians including governor chris christie. we discovered there's a big debate about how to rebuild after sandy and how to protect these beach communities from future storms. john and joett jayco are jersey shore, through and through. they're typical of middle class families who have flocked to these beaches for generations. she's a teacher. he's a salesman and they own a home in the modest community of dovell beach new jersey. >> paint a picture of what it was like after the storm. >> when we came off the school buses and came down the street it was ravines, water everywhere, foundations, there was a moat around one of the homes, looked like a moat.

>> some of the land had been ripped out, there are pools of water? >> actually right to our right here, this was all a moat filled with water. and it went around this other neighbor's house bag to the lagoon. >> built on a barrier island on places only a few yards wide, sandy flooded the beach from one side to the odor. the jaygos home was badly damaged. we just finished renovations a few weeks ak. we caught up with them while they were waiting for a plumber. >> what's that experience been like for you guys? >> relief now but it was very frustrating, it was a lot of different emotion when we first saw everything destroyed. >> john what was it like for you? >> it was i guess semishock surreal feeling because of all the damage and work in front of

us. you thought you were at universal studios back lot tour waiting for somebody to flip the switch waiting for somebody to put it back in its order. >> was there's still evidence of sandy's destruction up and down the jersey shore, it's hard not to be impressed by just how quickly much of the coast has been rebuilt. but it's how the jersey shore is being rebuilt that has some people concerned. they say it's not a matter of if these homes would be wiped out busy another storm but simply when. >> hurricane sandy really showed us how vulnerable the way we've developed the coast is. >> executive director of the american literally society, a national organization dedicated to protecting the shoreline. he says some of the communities throong jersey along the jersey

shore shouldn't exist at all. >> is this money well spent? >> no. we have the opportunity make ourselves more resilient but we put things back in the places where they were destroyed. >> what should we be doing? >> we should be getting people out of those places. >> getting them out of the homes. >> returning those places back to open space, returning them back into natural areas. >> we interviewed dillingham in the town of mantoloken, a place that is the revenuest in new jersey, a median being income of $114,000. in the town of mantoloken, homes wesh washed away and this became part of the ocean but now they have pumped in tons of sand and

once again the property is for sale. >> part of the barrier island breached and this type of thing is going to happen again. why does it make any sense? it defies common logic. >> should this house behind us be rebuilt? >> no. it is definitely a threat to the safety of the people who are rebuilding here and it's a waste of taxpayer money. >> nobody has been a bigger booster for rebuilding the jersey shore than governor chris christie. >> why should the rest of america care about spending this money to replenish the beaches of new jersey? >> because when crisis happen in mississippi or alabama or other places in the midwest or tornadoes we don't ask why would you want to rebuild that. we stand up for other americans. >> we spoke to christie at a press conference in seabright the suggestion that some people

on the shore should be sent packing doesn't sit well with him. >> i am not going to get in a situation where i'm going to start to condemn property in the state because a group of environmentalists think that's what they want to see. if folks are willing to comply with the law and make their structures more resilient and tougher against the weather, then i don't think there's any reason why i shouldn't let them rebuild. >> the federal government has allocated $60 billion to help communities recover from sandy. money the state of new jersey is happy to take. but the state is not using much of that money to buy people out of destroyed homes. instead, christie has another plan. build massive artificial dunes on nearly every beach along the jersey shore. >> what do you say to critics who say this is not a good uses federal tax dollars? >> i think it's beyond debate now that natural dune systems that can be engineered

appropriately by the army corps of engineers save property and save lives. go to avalon and see how it protected folks and don't bother to go to a neighborhood there because it's gone but go further along the beach at long beach island where they had dunes and the neighborhoods are fine. >> we took christie's vice and wement to harvey cedars. >> what would happen? >> we would look like mantoloking. we would probably cut through to boulevard and the damage would be significant. >> what's your opinion should some of the development here come off the beach? >> i don't think you're ever going to move the property off the beach and if you want to buy these people's homes out, right, then maybe you can have that conversation, right? but if you don't want to do

that, then we need to protect them. >> here's another iconic image from hurricane sandy. the roller coaster in sea side heights collapsed into the ocean. seaside heights didn't have artificial dunes but they're busy building them now. tony boz sits on the city council. >> this is a costly project. >> this is a costly project. >> do you know how many millions you're going to spend on this project? >> we're going ospend total $16 million from start to finish. >> city money or federal money? >> both. >> mantoloking has long been a destination for working folks drawn to its boardwalk full of fast food stands and arcade games. but behind this fun loving image, something much more serious, the extent which new jersey relies on visitors.

>> you're down 50 to 60%? >> 50 to 60% yes. if we were here a year ago this time these facilities would be jam packed during dinner time. >> seaside heights has been busy trying to lure back tourists. it has replaced a mile of ocean front boardwalk that was lost to the sea. the amuse many peer is now back open for -- pier is open for business even showing mother nature a little defiance. it's most popular new ride, superstorm. >> hurricane is going to get worse with climate change and sea level rise and sandy showed us where if vulnerabilities are, the way we built along the coast puts us at risk. there's no reason that things will be different, in fact it will probably get worse. >> probably get worse? >> sea level rise, climate

change, bigger storms more frequent storms. >> how far above the sea level? >> two or three feet above our house here. >> climate change models show that you will have sea level rise of two to three feet. >> that concerns me. i only have one storm like this in me and my wife would say the same thing. >> do you think there would be a beach house here for their generation? >> i lope so. >> among the people we talked to about this report there was a common thread a lot of passion and love for the jersey shore. everyone is hoping that the summer of 2014 is better than this year. joie. >> that's our correspondent adam may out on the jersey shore. and finally from us a shout out to those of us who are as we say women of a certain age. one from our sisterhood did what seems surely possible. at least until now.

we meet a brave and remarkable woman as she touches the shore of key west, florida. yes on her fifth try, 64-year-old diana nyad became the first woman to swim from cuba to key west without the protection of shark cage. this time the sharks stayed away, she avoided the sting of the box jellyfish and arrived to a joyous welcome on smathers beach. her lips swollen, 35 years after her first attempt, diana nyad, finally gets her victory speech. >> three messages. we should never ever give up. [ cheering ] >> second, you never are too old to chase your dream.

and it looks like a solitary sport but it's a team one. >> yes, it is a team and diana nyad's team member is her nephew tim wheeler who has been documenting his aunt's incredible journey. who is with us via skype. how is she doing tim? >> she is doing fantastic. she's an incredible woman, it's incredible how quickly she recovers, she is sleeping but just a couple of hours ago we were joking she had an iv in the hospital and she was literally entertaining as usual and joking with people. >> did she -- i've read about the incredible number of calories she has to school. did she sit down for a big meal after that or what happened? >> not quite. i think her appetite is actually really depleted. after being in the saltwater that much time she's really not in the mood to be eating but she

really needs fluids more than anything but she was on an iv drip right away after getting out of the water. >> as you were going along with her after the filming was going along what did you see with her, was there better resolve or were there times when you thought she might not make it? >> you know i've been documenting this journey for almost four years and it's just astonishing what she does out there. she's going out there for 30, 40 and this is of course you know almost 50 hours, and she's been -- her ability to just keep going, and you think that it's going to be over, for any other human being. i mean i don't know how to describe it except for maybe she's from another planet because she keeps pushing on and on and on and it's her ability to go even deeper and deeper and deeper and find in herself the ability to keep on going and to be honest i don't know where she gets it from.

>> it's really extraordinary her achievement and the sport of all of you, it's tremendous for her and it's clear that's part of her message and we thank you tim miller for your yoing us via skype. >> thank you. >> if you want to talk to us lag log onto our web site, aljazeera.com/america tonight. and join the conversation with us on twitter or at our facebook page. good night, we'll be back for more of america tonight, tomorrow.

>> welcome to al jazeera i'm john siegenthaler. here are tonight's stop stories. john mccain and lindsay graham met with the president today to talk where the military action against syria. a nine page report given to parliament, nine page statement said there was chemical weapons. arcafghan and u.s. forces defend the base, fukushima nuclear